The JackB

"When you're in jail, a good friend will be trying to bail you out. A best friend will be in the cell next to you saying, 'Damn, that was fun'." Groucho Marx

Archives for October 2011

Dreams Require Action

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It is a quarter to midnight and I am enjoying a sugar rush. You can blame it upon the tax I charged my children for taking them Trick or Treating this evening.

We went South of the Boulevard and wandered through the wild and woolly hills of Sherman Oaks. The neighborhood bands together to block off the streets so that for a few hours the only thing on wheels in the street are strollers, skateboard, bikes or other accessories to Halloween costumes.

I love it because for a moment in time my children get to see something that feels like an old slice of Americana. I love it because for a moment of time dreams morph into a pseudo reality that I can use for a teaching moment.

Dreams Require Action

There is magic in the night and I look at these children of mine and tell them that dreams can come true but there is a price to be paid. Dreams require action. They require work and a willingness to take risks. This is not the first time that they have heard these things from me. I tell them that one of my dreams is for them to live their dreams and not dream their lives.

I want them to understand that you cannot rely upon luck or fate to make your way in this world. You can’t hope your way to living that life you dream of. You have to put some effort into making it happen. You have to be willing to work and to do so with your eyes open so that you recognize opportunity when it comes.

And that is a big part of why I set up a separate blog for Nanowrimo. I want to be a role model and have something that I can show them as being part of my effort to put the time in.

The new joint is called Words Left Unspoken. Right now it is nothing more than a bare skeleton that I am going to try and flesh out.  I think that I am going to be able to keep this place going and that one as well, but I won’t know for certain until I try.

What I do know for certain is I have stories to tell and I want to do more than see them inside my head. Today a new adventure begins. Now is my opportunity to show these kids that dad knows that dreams require action.

Nanowrimo

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It is almost National Novel Writing Month also know known as Nanowrimo. For those of you who don’t know what it is here is a brief description:

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing on November 1. The goal is to write a 50,000 word, (approximately 175 page) novel by 11:59:59, November 30.

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It’s all about quantity, not quality. This approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.

I am going to participate this year but I have to make a number of decisions about how it is going to work.

  1. Will I post my insertions here and if so will I publish them all daily.
  2. If I don’t publish them here where will I do it and will I share the URL.
  3. Do I take this opportunity to use Fragments of Fiction as the foundation for the story or do I go a different direction.
  4. Technically shouldn’t this be something like question number 8 or 9. Every other question has been composed of multiple questions.
  5. Will Nanowrimo push me to finally write the book that is inside of me?

Lots 0f questions and no answers yet, but there will be soon. Stay tuned to this bat channel and or leave your comments, thoughts and ideas in the comment section.

The Fastest Way To Lose Readers

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The fastest way to lose readers is also the fastest way to gain them. Pick a controversial topic and write about it. Don’t straddle the fence either- take a position and own it.

If the Shmata Queen ever decides to return from her self imposed exile she will tell you that I used to do that very thing. This blog used to be filled with posts on politics and religion and the comment section was often bloody.

Some of that blood is on my head and hands. When I engage in the heat of battle I am not very gentle nor am I good about taking prisoners.  It isn’t always one of my finer qualities but it is who I am. I am a Taurus and if you poke the bull you often get the horns and the hooves and not the way you prefer them.

What Made You Stop Writing Those Posts

I never officially stopped writing them but I did get bored with it all. A million different debates that skipped civility and went straight to mud slinging made me ask whether there weren’t better ways to use my time. Though I am not afraid of disagreement it seemed like the smarter course of action was to build consensus and that rarely happened.

Not to mention the influx of trolls, most of whom show up every time I write about being a staunch Zionist Jew who thinks that the U.N. is a joke, that the International Red Cross failed Gilad Shalit and doesn’t believe that George Bush should be indicted for war crimes.

FWIW, I am neither Democrat nor Republican. A long time ago the parties left me and so I decided that since neither one of them truly represented me any more I would leave them and vote solely based upon the issues meaning I cross party lines as needed.

I don’t believe that either side is trying to destroy the good old U.S. of A. and get irritated when I get a million emails telling me that Republicans/Democrats and the devil and the only good liberal/conservative is a dead one.

What Do You Think About Occupy Wall Street

The Occupy Wall Street movement makes me crazy. I am a fierce defender of the First Amendment and support the right to assemble and vocalize our opinions. I think that the banks owe the American people a huge debt and that they are failing us. We bailed them out with our tax dollars. We gave them the cash with the provision that it would be used to help people and it is not happening.

I pay a ridiculous amount of money for healthcare. I haven’t seen my dentist in a year because I can’t afford to  pay for my teeth and my children. I have them in a private school because their local elementary school was failing and education is of paramount importance.

So if you ask me if I am angry about things I will say yes. I will tell you that I am furious and I want change. But I don’t believe the Occupy Wall Street Movement has the answer and here is why.

I haven’t seen a list of demands and a plan of action. Instead I have seen a list of things that they would like change but as far as I know it is an unofficial list. And might I add that I don’t agree with a lot of the items on there. Look, I am pissed off that I can’t fly and that some people think that Twilight is art but so what.

What I want to see is a realistic and actionable list of change. I want a plan and I want structure. Give me three items that you think are a problem. Tell me why and then tell me how you want to affect change. That makes sense to me. That provides a realistic chance to make a positive change and impact millions of lives.

But The Police Are Mean

STFU for a moment and think. There are good cops and there are bad cops. I am sure that some of these police officers are guilty of bad things and should be prosecuted for them. But they aren’t all bad and frankly I am tired of using my tax dollars to pay for them to watch over you protesters.

Yes, that is right. We are spending money we don’t have to keep an eye on these tent cities. That money could be applied to infrastructure in the cities. It could be used to repair roads, maintain power lines, fund education and do a million other things.

Now if you had a real plan and structure I might feel differently. If I felt like you were doing something to really change the country I would feel differently.

Frankly if I had the power I would check the voting records of every one of you guys. I don’t care who you voted for or what the issues were- all I want to know is if you voted.

If you didn’t vote and were eligible for it I would fine your ass. If you don’t vote you gave up your right to complain.

Bottom line time. I want to see change. I don’t think things are hunky-dory but I want action. I don’t want lip service. I won’t listen to either side point fingers. Shut up, come up with a solution and then execute it. The time to complain is over. Now is the time for action.

Never Blog On a Saturday Night

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It was written in a plain Helvetica or maybe it was a simple Arial- can’t say because the message left me shaking with fear. That email said “Don’t Blog On Saturday Night” and gosh they must have really meant it or the man/woman at 7262meix@yahoo.com wouldn’t have sent it to me.

I know this to be true the same way that I know that WWJD stands for “What Would You do for Jelly Donuts.” Not to mention my Nigerian friends have sent me, Jack, the Bishop of Bullfrog tons business opportunities via email. You would be more than a little bit jealous if I told you how much money I have made from Shola Rhodes and company.

Where were we? Oh yes, we were talking about the email that told me that we should never blog on a Saturday night. I read it twice and then made a point to label to use my Gmail label to mark it so that I could find it. In case you are wondering it goes under “useful” right next to to the Viagra and penis extension ads which reminds me that I am ever so glad to get those.

Why? Because every man wants to be known as “Tripod,” the guy that makes a horse jealous with his manly member. And more importantly, thanks to the Viagra emails you can keep your lady happy for 27 hours of unbridled fun. How exciting is that.

Now before you get jealous let me assure you that the text in that Viagra email says that you will have fun for 27 hours. I don’t know about you but I can’t help but get excited about being granted another three hours in a day. In fact when I take those pills I tell my partner that she is going to receive the ride of her life, even better than an “E-Ticket.”

Damn, I went off on another one of those tangents again and didn’t focus on the Never Blog On a Saturday night bit so let’s circle back. The person who sent that clearly has my best interests in mind and based upon my desire to help the world I am passing it along to you.

Did I mention that I also know from experience that the best way to get bloggers to read a post is to blog about blogging. Damn if it is not like watching moths fly towards the porch light. Blog about blogging and the bloggers will come and who doesn’t smile because of that.

Substance Trumps Pretty Packaging

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I am tired of listening to the self righteous and indignant blabbermouths who rail on about the need for everything to look perfect. This is a blog. It is not up for an Academy Award- not now and probably not ever. I am not trying to wow you or anyone else with my cinematography. My focus is on the substance and not the superficial.